Federal government announces new $25m krill aquarium and research facility to be built at Taroona

A world-leading new research facility will be built in a suburb of Hobart, with the federal government saying its work will be “priceless”.

More than $25 million will be spent building a world-leading Antarctic krill aquarium and research centre in Hobart, Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek has announced.

To be co-located at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies’ fisheries and aquaculture research centre at Taroona – soon to undergo a significant redevelopment – construction of the new Commonwealth-funded project is expected to begin next year.

Ms Plibersek said the aquarium would help scientists gain a better understanding of how climate change was impacting krill, a species that plays a vital role in the Southern Ocean food chain.

RSV Nuyina krill aquarium. Picture: Pete Harmsen / AAD

“Based on weight, Antarctic krill are the most abundant wild animal species on earth and are the main diet of marine animals such as whales, seals and penguins,” she said.

“We need to know what impact warming oceans and ocean acidification will have on krill populations in the future.

“To protect the Antarctic environment is to protect the future of the world.”

The aquarium, which is expected to cost upwards of $25 million, will facilitate research on krill biology, as well as other species in the Southern Ocean ecosystem.

The Australian Antarctic Division (AAD) is a global leader in live krill research and operates one of only three Antarctic krill research facilities in the world.

Scientists at the AAD’s cold-water krill research aquarium at Kingston are analysing aspects of krill biology to develop methods of managing the species sustainably. Their studies focus on krill growth, ageing and production.

Labor Franklin MHR Julie Collins welcomed the investment, which she said was “significant” for the Antarctic environment.

Picture: Pete Harmsen / AAD

“This … will allow scientists at AAD to work closely with experts at the University of Tasmania,” Ms Collins said.

“Their work to improve our knowledge about the impacts of climate on krill reproduction will be priceless.”

IMAS is currently seeking planning approvals from the Kingborough Council to build two new labs at its Nubeena Crescent site, as well as a 54-space car park that will be available for public use outside of business hours.

According to UTAS, the proposed redevelopment will underpin vital climate, marine and Antarctic science research.

It will see IMAS’s operations fully consolidated in the south, with undergraduate fisheries and aquaculture students to shift from the Newnham campus to Taroona.